삼성재벌의 탈법행위와 그 법적 문제점에 관한 고찰

Abstract

The Lee family is considered the forerunner of law evasion in South Korea. Since 1996, many South Korean conglomerates have learned from Samsungand copied its unethical way of wealth accumulation and succession of management,insider trading, exclusive transactions between the parent and subsidiary,unjust contracts and unequal employer-employee relations, exorbitant dividendpayments, no-labor-union policy and temporary-worker systems. Lee, Kunhee,CEO of Samsung Group and his son, Lee, Jaeyong have evaded law and avoidedtax by taking advantage of CB(Convertible Bond) and BW(Bond withWarrant), thereby making enormous fortunes for themselves and at the sametime setting the example of circumvention for other big companies such asHyundai, SK, and LG. The South Korean Government sometimes corrects or revises law, rather obligedlywhen confronted with severe public opinion against law evasion;Samsung, however, skillfully finds other ways to escape from the government’sfinancial control, one example of which is to use a title under the third party’sname. Samsung avoids tax payment, taking advantage of CB and BW systems,which were originally intended to raise capital. Samsung abuses terms and conditionsof franchise contract and makes labor laws and Fair Trade Act lookmeaningless and void. It also evades the government’s regulation on exclusivetransactions between the parent and subsidiary by means of merger. Samsunghas resorted to an expedient to avoid the enactment designed to restrict themonopoly and unfair trade and cunningly adopted in-company subcontracts and merger. In a word, Samsung plays with law and furthermore mocksconstitutionalism. South Korean conglomerates including Samsung are experts in escapingfrom responsibilities imposed by labor laws. They employ such tricks as papercompany or contract. In fact, such avoidance is a global phenomenon whichseems inevitable, but it seems especially noticeable in South Korea and raisesmany problems: South Korean conglomerates continue to abuse laws selfishlyfor their own sake, which results in ineffectiveness of law and violation ofworker’s rights. Above all things, determination by law enforcement bodies to deal withthese issues resolutely is crucial. Drastic legislation to prevent tax evasion isalso important. When new legislation is difficult or impossible to enact, thecourt should interpret and apply the law appositely and take stern legal actionsagainst the circumvention of law by business magnates. Otherwise, the KoreanGovernment would lose its citizens’ trust in no time and Korean society wouldturn into money-oriented one filled only with disorder, corruption and no rules.